THE HIERARCHY OF THE CITIES AND TOWNS (Hierarchia miast)

The article stems from the research conducted in 1963 and aimed at establishing the hierarchy of prestige and attractiveness of Polish cities and towns by means of the poll, in which urban dwellers were asked to choose 4 Polish cities or towns, which they think are worth of recommending to foreign visitors. Studying both the resulted hierarchy and the opinions explaining the choice of particular city or town, the author comes to the conclusion that the assessment of a city's or town's prestige is independent of its administrative role and size. The particular criteria of evaluation suggest that the hierarchy is a phenomenon that emerged after the war. The opinions are largely informed by national stereotypes (e.g. the ideas of heroic post-war reconstruction of the state or technical development). Nation-wide stereotypes are more influential than region-specific ones.